The present invention relates to an animal shelter and more especially to an animal shelter which is suitable for protecting a domestic pet such as a dog from loud and/or sudden external noises such as percussion noises or explosions.
A great many common household pets, and particularly many breeds of dogs, are extremely sensitive to any loud or sudden noises which may occur in the animal's environment. The noises from which the animal shelter according to the present invention is designed to protect a pet may arise from any number of sources, and this number is constantly growing in our modern technologically oriented society wherein the problem of noise pollution becomes ever more serious each year. For example, noises which arise from outside the home include noises from vehicular traffic, construction work and the like, whereas noises arising within the home may range from any of today's noise-generating appliances to the slamming of doors and even to noisy children. Other special circumstances can also be envisioned where the animal shelter according to the present invention would find utility such as, for example, a hunting or other environment wherein the sound of gunfire must be tolerated, or the especially sensitive profession where highly bred dogs are shown and otherwise placed in competition.
Pet shelters constructed in the form of a covered dog bed have been proposed in the past, but these designs have had a number of disadvantageous features. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,879,473 discloses a thin, flexible blanket which is attached to a rigid base having a single door frame. The shelter does not provide complete protection of the pet from external noises and cold, and it requires that the pet turn around once inside the shelter in order to find his way out. U.S. Pat. No. 2,775,222 discloses a dog bed which has a blanket comprising two sheets of flexible material with insulating material therebetween attached to a pillow and a spring-closable opening for entrance and exit. The disadvantages of this dog bed are readily apparent. The opening defined by the spring is very limited in size, thereby making it very difficult for the dog to enter and leave the shelter. In addition, the bed in use would be difficult to manage due to the tendency of the bed to move when the dog is trying to enter the same. The bed of this patent has no base member as such, other than the pillow which is of the same external dimensions as the blanket. A number of improvements in the dog beds shown in the art have been proposed by applicant in her U.S. patent application Ser. No. 339,372. The subject of the present invention comprises even further useful and novel improvements in pet shelters of the same general kind shown in the aforementioned U.S. application.